Hydraulic variable gear for power transmission.



-A. SUNDH.

APPLICATION FILBD'UNE 2B, 1909.

` f Patented Mar. 14, 1911.

ill I'I'I'l S N 8 'I n ih: l|| 7 Q5 N wwe/Moz WM Q QQ a N K HYDBAULIG VARIABLE GEAR Foa POWER TRANSMISSION.

herenaftenfthe scope of the invention being To all whom it may concemf ment. p

.STATES OFFICE@ mmmsu-f strana, aromas, saw' sonia Be it known that I, AUGUST Sunnis, a citizen of the UnitedV States, residing at Yonkers, in the county of Westchester and State of New York, have invented a new' and useful Improvement in Hydraulic Variable Gear for Power Transmission, of which the following is a specification.

My inventionrelates to mechanism for transmittin power by fluid pressure from a drivinge ement to a driven element, and comprises means for effecting a variation inthe speed and torque of the driven ele- The invention comprises the combination cfa pump adapted to be ope-rated by a prime mover or otherv driving element, and a motor driven by fluid supplied from the pump', the motor being adapted to be connected to any mechanism that it is desired to operate. I

-One of the objects of the invention is tol l provide simple and efficient vpower transmitting'mechanism Tof the characterabove indicated, and in which the` means for con'- vtrolling the 'speed of the mechanism may be operated with ease and without danger of damage to the mechanism .from too sudden operation of the controlling devices.

Other objects of the invention will appear defined in the appended, claims, in which are set'forth the novel combinations of ele- `pump and fluid motor,-and also showing diagrammatically the electric driving motor and controllin 'mechanism therefor; Flg. 2 is a sectional e ovation view' of the fluid' mo'- tor ta'ken substantially on the plane inditrolling mechanism.- l The general arran ement ofparts comprises a prime mover ere shown as an elec-A Aed to vbe drivenby v from any suitalel "source of-v current supply cated by the line 2-2 of Fig. 1;- Fig.'3 is a sectional plan view taken'on the line 3 3 of .F ig. 1; F1g.`4 is a sectional elevation of the pump taken' substantially on the line 4 4.- of Fig. 1; Fig.-5 is adetail'view of the conmnmtmrc vamente .ema Ioit mnsnsnrssrcr.

-fSrecicffonnfiffrs-Petent n Patented Mar. 14, 1911. Applicata. nee Inserat, 1509?.' sum1 No. suecas.

'through the positive `andi negativemains v'design-ated and respectively. f The main line switch A connects these mains to conductors 1 and 2' leading to the field windings of themotor, and conductors 3 and 4 leading tothe reversing switchR. The con- A ductorsy 3l and 4 are adapted'to be connected through the reversing switch' R- to conductors 5 and 6 vleading to the commutator or rotor of the motor'.v The reversing switch comprises alever 7 pivoted at 8 and carrying .insulated switch vcontacts 9 and 10 connected respectively to the conductrs 3 and 42. When the lever 7 is rotated to carry the contacts 9- and -10 upward they engage respectively with stationary contacts 11 and 12 connected to the' conductors 6 and 5.

upon a base B on which are'also mounted the pump P and a fluid motor L. The pump P comprises a casing consisting of sections 15 and 16y secured together by lmeans of bolts or rivets 17 (see Fig. 4). The shaft 18 of the motor M extends through the pump casing and has keyed thereto a pump gear 19 which'meshes with a similar pump gear 20 journaled in the upper part of the casing.

'The fluid motor L comprisesl a case formed in sections 21, 22, 23, 24 and 25, secured/t0'- gether by the ro-ds or bolts. 26. These sections divide the casing into compartments in which are located pairs of intermeshing gears a, a', b, b', c, c and d, d. The gearse, b, c and d are keyed to a shaft 27 extending through the casing in alinement with the motor shaft 18. On the outerend of the. shaft 27 is a pulley 28 which may be geared by f means of a belt 29 to any mechanism which it is desired to drive. The casingof the motor L is formed with three horizontal cylindrical, valve chambers 30, 31 'and 32,v

`in which are adapted to reciprocate valve members 33, 34 and 35 connected' by a yoke, 'i

36. The valve members 33 and 35 each comu per part.' of the ump and is ro- .videdinthisfcham rwlthavalveS. n n

valve member 34 may be adjustably secured in the yoke'36 by means of a set screw 39.

AThe valve members- 33,34 and 35 are preferablyl each provided with a longitudinal air passage 8O to permit the conlined air in the valve chambers 30, 31 and 32 to be trans` ferred .from one 'end to theother of said chambers as the valve members are operated.

.The pump valve 38 is provided with .apassage 81 for a similarpurpose. The casing for the motor L is provided .with vertically I disposed chambers or compartments 40 and 4 41 located on opposite sides ofthe compartments containing the motor' gear wheels.

.Communication lbetween the compartment 40and -the .gear chambers Vis controlled by the valve member 35 and communication between the compartment`4l andthe gear chambers is likewise controlled by the valve member 33. The compartment 40commuextend upward above the pump and motor casings. A circulating liquid 4 6, as for ex` ample water or oil, ills'the pump andv motor-casings and is 'sulicient to partially till the air domes. 44 and 44. The confined air above the liquid .serves to maint-ain an elas` tic pressure on .the liquid and prevents any sudden or excessive changes in thepressure of the liquid, and thereby prevents undue strain .on themechanism. Keyed to the end of the motor shaft18 is a sleeve' 47 which' also extends overthe end oftheshaft 27.

his sleeve carries an expansion ring or clutch member 44 of a` friction clutch K, .the -other member. 45 ofsaid clutch being A .keyedto the shaft 27. Splinedv on the sleeve'47 so as to rotate therewith is an an nular clutch operating member 48movable longitudinally on said sleeve into position to engage projections on the-expansion ring 44 and 'expand the latter into frictional con tact with the memb'er45. v

vA lever 49 for operating'the clutch K land 'the valve mechanism is pivoted at 50 and extends upwardly through a slot 51 .formed in the'yoke '36 and stem ofthe valve member.

34. The leve-r A49- is formedwith 4a ring 52 surrounding the collar 48 and provided with lugs engaging an annular recess 53 in the collar 48 for moving .the latter longitudinally. A rodv 54 is pivoted at one end 4to thelever 49 and its opposite end is connected by -a -pivot 55 to a disk 56 pivoted .at 57 to 'a bracket 58 carried by the motor `M. The

' pivot 55 is extended tol formfahandle 59 which isalso adapted to engage cam extennsions 6'0"'ande'61` formed l"on vtheswitch lever..

7 for operatingthe latter..

The operation will be understood fom".l

.the vfollowing description: With the parts in the position shown'the motor M is lat rest, thesupply of current being cut ofi' from the rotor. If now the operator moves the operating handle 59 upward for examplek t-o rotate the disk 56 ina'counterclockwise direction, the cam 60 ,will rst be engaged by the handle 59 and the lever 7 rotated intoposi'- tion to bring the contacts 9 and -10 into en` gagement with the stationary contacts 13 and 14, and thereby connect the positive andy negative mains with the conductors 5 and 6 respectively. The motor Mv is thus started and rotates the pump gears 19y and 20 for example in the direction indicated by the arrows in Fig. 4.- The pumploperates in a well understood manner to force the liquid from the rightfhand side tothe left-hand side-of the pump gears. The liquid is therefore forced through the pipe 43 into the ,chamber 41 of lthe motor L. The valves at this time being in the position indicated in `Fig. 3the compartment 41 is 'in communication through the ports aP, b2, ai, and d with vthe gear compartments. fllhe liquid `being forced into these compartments at the right hand side of the gears (see Fig. 2) rotates the latter as indicated by the arrows. From the left hand side of the gear compartmentthe liquid flows through ports as, b3, ci, and d3 'and' the valve chamber 32 into the compartment 40, and from thence through the pipe 42 to the intake'iside of the pump casing, thereby completiiig the circulation of .the liquid. As the liquid at this time is distributedv to the four gear chambers ofthe motor, the motor-gears are operated at a comparatively slow speed, and apply correspondingly powerful torque to the shaft 27 for operating the driven mechanism. A continu'ed movement of the hand lever 59 in a counterclockwise. direction operates ythrough the link'54 and lever 49 to move the valve mechanism to the left, and thereby move the valve sections f into position to close' the ports a2,.and as. The valve section e 1s at `the same timemoved into position to open communication from one side to the other of the first gear chamber through the ports a* anda5 and .valve chamber31. The .liquid from the pump will therefore be distributed to operate the remaining three sets of gears b, b. c, c and d, d', resulting 1n a corre,- sponding increase in the speed o/f the driven shaft l27.` The 4gears a and a at this time merely'cause la circulation of'liquid in their own compartment. ofthe valve mechanism tothe left will bring the valve sections (7 into position toclose the ports b2 and b3 cutting ofi the supply ot fluid from thegears b and b', at the same time moving thevalvesection f into position to A further movement permit. a localcirculation of the liquid' by the gears'b and 11.. The liquid from. the

A lates the clutchK to connectthe sleeve 4 to 'the shaft 27 Vthereby forming a direct drivi Y veration'of elevators, automobile trucks, and' like manner closes the, ports c2 and c3 so'that` andthe driven shaft'27. This operation ofthe clutch takes place during the gradual eiiciently at a high speed. The motion degears c, c and d, d so that the initial speed 1 s substantially doubled. A further movement f the valve mechanism to the leftin all the liquid-is directed to the gears d and d', resulting in a 4corres ondingincrease Ain the speed. The motor is now being o erated at its ,highest'driving speed. A v rther movement of the valve mechanism to the left movesthe sections z' into position to valve 4section 38 in the pump P into position to permit a free local circulation of thev liquid in the pump casing through -the ports 7:' (see Fig. 41). During this 'final movement" of the valve mechanism the sleeve 48 o ering-connection between the motor shaft '18 cutting oil of the drivin liquid from the last section of the 'motor a positive driving connection being eili'ected through `the clutch before'the driving pump is'entirely out 0H' from the Huid motor. The speed of the shaft 27 when the pump P is operating vto drive the gears d. and al only is substantially the same as'thatof the motor shaft 18, v

so that there is no sudden or material changq Iin the speed ofthe shaft 27 when .the clutch K is operated. If the operating handle 59 ismoved back toward initial posit-ion4 the cycle of operations above described willA be reversed, and gradually reduce the speed of the drivenl shaft. By moving the handle 59 to an intermediate position any desired speed may be maintained. If the handle 59 is moved downward from its initial positionA the switch lever will be operatedto reverse the motor circuit and cause a reversal of the motor-M, resulting in a reversal of the shaft 27. The operation of the clutch and lvalve mechanism is the -same however when the operating handle 59 is movedin a clockwise direction as when moved in a countercl'ockwise direction.

l have herein shown a gear ump and gear motor because I have found iifom experience i that gear mechanism of this kind whenproperly made can be operated ,with a high pressure and is adapted to operate livered by'this mechanism isalsovery regular. lt will be understood however that various 'other `forms of `iuid operated' pumps and motors may be employed within the scope of this invention. .The present invention is well adapted for ,use in operating large planers or lathes, boring mills, etc., but may also be used to advantage in the op-y numerous other mechanical devis. i arious changes in the details of construction and arrangements of parts might obviously abe made within the sco e and spirit of the .present invention.I I wish therefovre 'not to be limited to the particular construction and arrangement herein disclosed. What I claim is'newanddesire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is

for saidchambers successively, and open said passages as theoorresponding said ports are closed.

2. The combination withv a'prime mover` of pumping mechanism connected thereto, a fluid motor comprising a plurality of compartments, and driving mechanism in 'sa-id compartments, means for .conveying liuid from the pumping mechanism tothe motor, meansfor directing the fluid to a dilierent .number of said compartments at will, and.

means for reversingthe prime mover' and thereby Vreversing the iiu'id motor.

3. The combination with a pump, of'a motor comprising a\plural1ty'of chambers, .driving gears in ch of said chambers,

means for conveyin liquid from the pump' to said chambers fov f operatingl` said gears, means for returning the liquid to the pump, and valves associated with each chamber, said valves being operable successively 'to cut oft the-supply of liquid to said hambers and simultaneously establish a'""local circulation of the liquid` in the chambers.

4. The combination with a pump, of'a motor comprising a plurality of chambers,

driving gears in said chambers, means for conveying liquid from the pump to said chambers for ,operating said gears, means for returning the liquid from said chambers` to .the pump, valve mechanism operable to cut olf the supply of liquid to' said chambers successively and at the same time establish jlocal paths for the circulation of liquid in the chambers, and meansV for establishing a local circulation of liquid in the pump when the supply of liquid motor. y l

5'. The combination wit-h a pump compris- 'ing a driving'shaft, yof a sectionalxluid is cut of from lthev motor comprising a driven shaft in alinement with said driving shaft, means. for Aconveyingr fluid from the pump and distributing it to the several sections ofthe motor, valve mechanism controlling the supply of iiuid to the motor, a vclutch between said shafts,

and connections between said valve vmecha`l nism and clutch for controlling the order in is which they are operated.

so valve mechanism operable to close the ports` order. f

' 6. The combination with'a prime mover, of a pump, a fluid motor, meansffor conveying' liquid from the'pump to the motor to operatethe latter, valve mechanism controllingthe circulation of liquid through the culationof fluid, adriv'enmember operated by the fluid motor, clutch mechanism operable to mechanically connect the prime mover withsaid driven member, 'and mechanical fconnectlons between saidfcontroller, valve'- mechanism, and clutch mechanism for controlling their orderof operation.

8. The combination with a primel mover, of a pump, a casing comprising a plurality of compartments, a shaft extending through said compartment-s, gears -in said compartl.

ments connected to drive said shaft, means for conveying liquid from-the pump to said compartments for operating said gears` means for controlling. the supply of liquid to said compartments, `and clutch mechanism' between said shaft. and'prime mover.

, 9.. The combination with an electric motor,

' of a controller therefor, a pump connected to b e driven by said motor, a lliquid-motor,

L means for'x'conveying' liquid between the pump and liquid motor, valve mechanism controlling the circulation of liquid, a driven member'operated by the liquid motor, a-clutch operative to directly connect said driven member to the electric motor, and'mechanical connections between said controller, valve mechanism and clutch forv securing their operation in a predetermined order.

10.- The combination with a casing provided with a plurality of compartments, gears locatedfineach of said compartments, a pressure chamber. and' an' exhaust. chamber, passages connecting each compartment with said chambers, a separate by-pass connectingthe pressure andexhaust sides of' each 'of v said compartments, andvv v alve mechanism operable vto successively close the passages connect-ing the gear compartments Iwith said chambers, and opening theZ -by-pass for each gear compartment when it is cut off from said i e pressure and exhaust chambers.

11. In power transmission mechanism,the

combinationiwith a pump, of a motor, a

-valve mechanism controlling` thecirculation of liquid in the pump, piston-valves controllingthe circulation `of liquid in the i V x -'motor, and means for mechanically ,con-

neet-ing said valve mechanism' and said piston valves for o eration.

12. The combination with a pump and motor each, comprising a valve chamber, a

piston valve in each of said chambers,'and mechanical connections between said valves. 13. The combination with a pump and a motor, ofpiston valves therefor, and rigid connections between said valves. 14. The combination with a sectional casing, of a plurality of parallel cylindrical valve chambers, a plurality of ri 'dly connected piston valvesin each of sai chambers and. controlling the circulation of fluid within the sections of the casing, and means for connecting the valvesin the several valve chambers 'for .simultaneous movement.

15. 'The combination with a casing provided vvith a ,plurality of compartments and parallel valve chambers formed in the casing, of slide valves'ineach of said ,valve 'chambers and controlling the flow of fluid in vsaid compartments, and means for mechanically connectingall' of said valves for simultaneous movement.

16. The `combination with a casing'. provided with a plurality of compartments, and

a plurality of .valve chambers, of passages connecting each of said valve chambers to eachof said compartments, a valve member in one-of saidc ambers operable from an initial position to. successively close the pas sagescommunicating with its valve chamber, a valve member in another of said chambers initially closing the passages leading from its valve chamber and operable to successively open said passages, and means for operating said valve members. I

17. Qlhe combination with a pump, of a fluid motor, piston valves inthe pump and' .motor and?. controlling the .circulation of liquid in the pump and motor, land mechanical'connections' between said valves to effect Itheir simultaneous operation. 1

.18, The combination with a fluid motor, of parallel cylindrical valve chambers therefor, piston valves insaid'chambers, a pump,

avalve chamber therefor in alinement with oneLof said first named 'valve chambers, a. piston valve in said p umpl valve chamber, and a valve stem connecting the pump valve with one of the motor valves.

` 19. The combinationv with a pump, of a sectional fluid motor provided with ports permitting the circulation of liquid through the pump sectionsin parallel, means fonconveying the liquid between the motor and pump, piston valves movable longitudinally into positions to out off the circulation of liquid through 'the l I notor sections successively, a passage permitting a local circula- .tion of liquid withinthe pump, a piston valve normally closing said passage and connections 'between the motor Valves and said v I I I p last named valve-for movin [the latter to open position when the circu ation through thel motor Asections is cutoff. y

and means for reversing the current through the electric motor and thereby reversing the direction ofthe electric Inotor,'rpump andv fluid motor.

. 21. The combination with a pump com# prising intermeshing gearsand a drive .shaft secured to one of said gears, o fl a sectional liquid motor, each section of'which.

comprises intermeshimg gears, a driven shaft in alinement with the drive shaft and having a gear of each of said sections'securedthereto, means for circulating aliquid from' the pump throu h the motor sections in para1lel,.'valve mec anism forA cuttingf'of the circulation through the motor sections successively and thereby accelerating thed'riven" "i shaft to substantially -the same speed as the drive shaft, and clutchmechanism for'conbrought to the same speed.

nectingsaid shafts when they have been i 22. In a iuid motor, the combination with a plurality of sections, of fluid circulating means within each` sectionasupply chamber, a discharge chamber, ports'connecting each of said sections with both of said chambers, a port associated with each of said sections to permit a' local circulation of' fluid when the port is open, valves "controlling all of` said ports, operating mechanism connect,- ing the valves', said' valves being relatively positioned to cut off the circulation between said chambers and said sections in succession "and to open the ports for local circulation of the liquid each section simultaneously .with the cutting oi of said section froin the said chambers.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this-specification in the presence of two subscribingwitnesses. f

, AUGUST SII-NDH. Witnesses:

JOHN F. RULE, v JAMES G. BETHELL. 

